vie.

Almost 20 years ago, I took a pregnancy test...and it was negative.  So I took another...negative.  And about 30 more at the doctor and at home...negative.  I finally called in sick to work, drove to a Planned Parenthood, and peed on their stick...positive.  Finally, concrete confirmation of what I already knew.  I was expecting my first baby, and I ran straight to the nearest pay phone, at a Carl's Jr., to tell the man I had married only a month before that he was going to be a father.  That baby, Katie, was born 9 months and 1 day after our wedding...Thus begun our "Baby Vie." 

Vie is prounounced "vee," and it means "life" in French.  Baby Vie means "baby life..." the life that is born the moment that second line appears on the pregnancy test.  Once your baby life begins, you never think only of yourself again.  You think about how every decision you make will affect not only your life but your child's as well.  You don't drink vodka because it might hurt your unborn.  Your spare bedroom is painted in pastels and filled with a crib and changing table.  Diapers begin littering every corner of your world, and undescribable love fills every cell of your heart.    
All I ever wanted growing up was to have children.  Even though loving these children has brought some heartache and frustration along the way, I have to say that my life has been fuller and more blessed than I could have imagined as I dreamed it up in my head as a child.
As the clock races faster and faster every day, I hope I can capture some moments here...I can't stop them from fleeting by, but maybe I can go back and recapture glimpses of them here sometimes.  I hope you enjoy the journey with us.

                                                      June 19, 2011 Kensie Rose's arrival

                                                  The Swafford Family December 2011